Tigers defensive end Charles Harris, who tackled South Carolina’s David Williams in October, credits his youth boxing training with some of his success on the football field. File photo by Shane Keyserskeyser@kcstar.com

Tigers defensive end Charles Harris, who tackled South Carolina’s David Williams in October, credits his youth boxing training with some of his success on the football field. File photo by Shane Keyserskeyser@kcstar.com

Read More

Much gets made of Harris’ high school basketball career at Lincoln Prep, especially on TV broadcasts of Missouri games, but the skills he learned from boxing translate more directly to football’s weekly on-field trench warfare.

“There’s something about playing an individual sport where you have to only rely on yourself,” Tigers defensive line coach Craig Kuligowski said. “Either you’re mentally ready or you’re not mentally ready. You have to be prepared, and then you’ve got to be tough. … When you go out there in the ring, when you go out there on the (wrestling) mat, it’s you and that guy. There’s nobody else, so you can’t come back and point a finger.”

Preparing for what’s become a breakout sophomore campaign, Harris again incorporated boxing into his summer training regimen, sparring with a friend at a Columbia gym for a month.

“It really worked on my hand-eye coordination in terms of actually seeing things develop,” said Harris, who is tied for first in the SEC with 151/2tackles for a loss. “Seeing punches come at me, that correlates to on the field where I can see somebody’s hands about to be placed at a certain spot on my body and I can knock it off.”

Related stories from Kansas City Star

“You could see this spring he had taken his game to another level,” Missouri coach Gary Pinkel said. “He’s just an amazing competitor — great kid and very driven to be great, to make that next move up. It’s really neat to see him mature and be the player he is right now. The upside, too, is what’s he going to be like a year from now?”

Harris is tied for third on the Tigers with 44 tackles, trailing only linebackers Kentrell Brothers and Michael Scherer, and his six sacks are tied with redshirt freshman Walter Brady for most on the team.

“He’s getting better,” Kuligowski said. “We pull up film of last year and watch him take on a block, and his feet aren’t as good as they are now, his hands aren’t as good as they are now. His get-off is better now. He’s stronger. All these things lead toward being a good player.”

Ironically, Harris wants to heal people after football as an occupational therapist, a field he was drawn to because his mother, Deborah Clark, has multiple sclerosis.

Medical school might have to wait until after an NFL career, but Harris, who is eligible for the 2016 NFL Draft as a redshirt sophomore, has no immediate plans to turn pro.

“I haven’t played a full season with Harold Brantley yet,” Harris said. “That was a guy that really kept me motivated during spring ball. … Once we lost Harold for this season (to a car wreck in June), I just feel like I’m obligated to stay for another year — not only for Mizzou and Mizzou fans and this Mizzou team in general, but also just for Harold himself. That’s kind of my big brother, who showed me the ropes and got me more passionate about the game.”